Market research firm SPINS recently said that while consumers may be looking for ways to reduce their sugar intake, there is still high demand for products that provide a sweet sensation, and certain targeted products containing natural sweeteners will continue to gain traction. success.
"Natural sweeteners are an important part of a healthy diet. Brands have learned that consumers are interested in keeping sugar in their diets, but they want sugar from natural sources," SPINS said in the report.
According to NielsenIQ, in 2021, there will be about 5.1 million online searches for "sugar-free products", 2.1 million for "stevia" and 1.2 million for "monk fruit".
Stevia, Monk Fruit, Sugar Alcohol
According to SPINS data, sales of products containing Luo Han Guo (+20%), stevia (+15%) and sugar alcohols (+3%) all increased year-on-year in the 52 weeks ended January 31, 2022. At present, new products related to stevia are booming and have spread to all regions of the world, among which carbonated soft drinks, snacks, juice drinks, other beverages and dairy products are in the top five applications, which also shows the popularity of stevia .
Consumers are also becoming more cautious about sugar usage in categories such as beverages, with SPINS finding year-over-year sales of products containing coconut sugar (+21%), sugar alcohols (+20%) and stevia (+10%) increase. In the most recent 52 weeks, dollar sales of beverages containing monk fruit rose 1.3%.
Consumer concerns about sugar content are not limited to beverages, SPINS noted, with consumers also becoming more aware of sugar in beef jerky and meat snacks, biscuits and snack bars, and candy. The study found that every category of "sugar-free" products outperformed traditional high-sugar products in dollar sales growth.
Brands focused on positioning their natural sweeteners are gearing up to meet growing consumer demand for low- and zero-sugar products.
Ketogenic Diet
SPINS noted that some dietary trends will continue to drive the development of low- and zero-calorie sweeteners, such as the ketogenic diet.
“Consumers are increasingly adopting ketogenic and Whole30 diets that ditch high-sugar products and focus more on protein and unprocessed foods. Certified ketogenic products, 2018-2021 Volumes were up 14.9%.” SPINS doesn’t expect the ketogenic trend to slow anytime soon.
Among the most established three best-selling categories, ketogenic products have grown steadily year-over-year. Among shelf-stable sodas and carbonated beverages, sales of products claimed to be ketogenic increased by +10.4%, shelf-stable water increased by +5%, and refrigerated creams and creams increased by +4.6%.
The product categories that seem to be most prone to ketogenic claims in recent years include shelf-stable bars, cereals, baking mixes, cookies and snacks. Such products are still growing steadily, according to market data from SPINS. In the shelf-stable biscuits and snack bars category, low or no net carb products saw a 21.31% increase in dollar sales over the measurable period in 2021, more than doubling 2020 dollar sales.